Deborah: A Clarification -By Rev. Father John Oluoma

I called a fellow priest of Sokoto diocese to confirm if what I saw on the internet is true, namely that some hoodlums were trying to burn the cathedral in Sokoto in protest against the arrest of the criminals that murdered Deborah.

Our discussion quickly shifted to the post I made yesterday after he confirmed that the attempt was repelled. He told me that some brethren felt bad that fada Oluoma said the issue was not religious.

I felt really amused, a little sad and then worried that people do not take the patience to understand a piece before responding. It dawned on me that some people took my position to mean a soft spot for the killers or those who hold such views. This should not even be the case if anyone read what I wrote fully.

If we reduce this issue to religion, government will have little or no reason to apply the full force of the law. A lady was mobbed to death in the most gruesome manner, what does the constitution or law of the country say about murder? If the constitution is clear on what happens to murderers, it’s either the government executes it or irresponsibly ignores.

People commit murder for any number of reasons, it’s the duty of govt to prevent murders and to execute those who succeed in commiting it. Learning about the motive behind the murder is only important for prevention. Deborah was murdered in cold blood, and I am saying it rests squarely on govt to bring the murderers to book, that’s the point of my post.

If the Nigerian government has been successfully executing murderers of this kind, do you think it would have been occurring? Religion neither adds nor subtracts the guilt of murderers, same with region or tribe. Anywhere murder occurs by anyone, it’s government’s responsibility to prosecute the culprits.

Maybe some people wanted me to make them emotionally and psychologically tipsy with sensational religious inuendoes and claims. Nigeria is a secular state, we are not governed by religious laws, this is where we should focus. If government cannot come down hard on people who kill and maim others, you don’t have a country, this should bother you more than giving artificial coloration to a dastardly act.

And if there’s any part of our constitution that enables any religion to do as the adherents wish, then the rest Nigerians should be on the street to pull it down or continue to suffer it’s effects. In a secular country, it’s insulting, belittling and cheapening to reduce a murder case to religion. I won’t be part of that idiocy, never ever.